


The a Team

by Always_Worth_It, Lalijinx



Series: In Another Life [1]
Category: Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, Iron Man (Movies), Marvel (Comics), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (2012)
Genre: Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Alternate Universe - Canon, Backstory, Drug Dealing, Past Abuse, Prostitution
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-19
Updated: 2013-01-19
Packaged: 2017-11-26 01:34:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,641
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/645067
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Always_Worth_It/pseuds/Always_Worth_It, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lalijinx/pseuds/Lalijinx
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tony looked taken aback by her obvious reluctance. “Uh, how about we start with an easy one...where did you get the name Pepper, Ms. Virginia?”</p><p>Pepper closed her eyes. Right. Easy one.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The a Team

**Author's Note:**

> Cowritten by Always and Worth It.
> 
> Alternate backstory for Pepper and how she got her name

_“Hey, Pep?”_

_“Yes, Tony?”_

_“You know my entire life story, but it occurs to me, I don’t know much about you before Stark Industries scooped you up.”_

_Pepper sighed. She had dreaded a question like this her entire adult life. “What do you want to know?”_

_Tony looked taken aback by her obvious reluctance. “Uh, how about we start with an easy one...where did you get the name Pepper, Ms. Virginia?”_

_Pepper closed her eyes. Right. Easy one._

\---------------

Sixteen-year-old Gin Potts left the courtroom smiling proudly. She was officially an emancipated minor. She was free.

Her new apartment was nearby, and she walked there with a newfound spring in her step. No more Gin, punching bag to an alcoholic father. She was her own person now, and she was determined to never end up back under his control.

She had a job, a home, and a bright future. She was going to work and take night classes to get her GED, then go to college on scholarship and get a masters in business. She was going to rise up the corporate ladder and be the wealthy CEO Virginia Potts someday, and no one could stop her.

She unlocked her apartment door, settling in on her tiny futon. The room was sparse, but it was a cheap set of furniture and basic necessities in a relatively inexpensive apartment with amenities, within walking distance of a street corner with a bus stop.

She was on track for the first step towards her future.

\---------------

Seventeen-year-old Virginia Potts wandered down the street, frowning at the sidewalk. She was officially out of a job. No way to pay the rent, the bills, to buy food.

What was she supposed to do now? She was out of luck, out of options, and not exactly the most desirable employee. She didn’t have any real degree or skills to her name, but hell would freeze before she even considered going back to her father.

A chilly fall breeze blew past, and she ducked into an alley, huddling into her threadbare jacket.

“No way am I paying that price.”

“C’mon, man, it’s just a little increase--” 

“Ritalin ain’t worth that damn much. I’m outta here.”

A scrawny college age boy hurried past her, pulling his hood up as he disappeared out onto the street. He was followed by lean man wearing a dark ball cap and leather jacket, grumbling to himself. He was stuffing something in a plastic bag back into his pockets.

“You know, you really ought to work on your sales technique.” The man whirled to face her, and Virginia resisted the urge to flinch. Okay, maybe not one of her brightest ideas.

“What the hell do you know, girlie?” he growled, taking a step towards her. Virginia stubbornly held her ground.

“Well, you gotta present your product as the most desirable thing out there. Don’t tell ‘em it’s a price increase, tell your customers you have the best deals for the highest quality merchandise. Tell ‘em how the other guy’s stuff is all crap, that’s why it’s cheaper. A quality price for a quality product.” She crossed her arms, doing her best to present a confident front.

The man scrutinized her with a gleam in his eye. “I like you, girlie. Ya got spunk. I could use a dealer like you. Whaddaya say, you want in? Cut ya a deal with the profits.” 

He stuck out a slim hand to shake. Virginia hesitated. Could she do this? _Should_ she do this?

The man’s expression started to sour. She reached out without thinking any further and took his hand before he could withdraw it and turn on her. He let out a braying laugh.

“There it is, girlie. Can I get a name to match that pretty face?” 

“Virginia.” He let out an inelegant snort.

“Now that ain’t gonna get you anywhere fast. Got anything better?”

Virginia scowled in thought. The only other name she had ever known was her father’s favorite nickname, Gin. She hated him. She couldn’t go back to him, to anything from that life. But right now...was she really even any better than he was?

“Ginny?” she suggested.

“Ginny it is. Welcome to the real world.”

\--------------

Eighteen-year-old Ginny Potts was out of luck. Things hadn’t been working out so well lately. She wasn’t making ends meet anymore. She needed to look into other options, because the profit cuts she was getting from dealing were too low for an already risky amount of product. She was a top dealer in the neighborhood, smarter and a better salesperson than all the others. But she was a girl. The other dealers trampled on her territory and took her profits, leaving her grasping at straws to make ends meet.

She needed to keep a clean record, and to get more involved than her current level in the system would seriously tempt fate by risking arrest. She needed something else, something more covert, to supplement the meager income she now made off the Vitamin R. Her rent had gone up after insurance costs on the building were raised, and now she was risking eviction.

Her dealer approached her one day with a request from the boss to meet up. She knew better than to turn down the request, and soon found herself meeting with the man in charge of the whole operation.

“I hear you’ve been skimming my profits for about a year now.”

“No, sir, I’ve been helping sell your product and taking only my cut.”

“That’s what they all say. There’s no way your _cut_ is keeping you alive. You’re too easy to find. I don’t want you in on that part of my business anymore, you hear me, girlie?”

“Yes, sir.”

“But, you are a very pretty loose cannon, so I think I may have some use for you yet. What’s your name?”

“Ginny, sir. Virginia.”

“Well that just won’t do. I can’t have a girl in your new line of work sounding like some innocent little flower. Hmm...I like your spunk, kid. Red hair and freckles...what do you think of the name Strawberry?”

“Strawberry, sir?”

“Yeah, I like it. Welcome aboard, Strawberry. I’ve got a few clients in mind who would pay handsomely for a pretty girl such as yourself to keep them company, if you catch my drift.”

She did.

Strawberry Potts quickly became a very popular companion for lonely men during the long, cold winter nights after she first came on the scene.

\-----------

Twenty-year-old Strawberry Potts was done. She couldn’t spend another day in the world she buried herself in years ago. She was sick of the endless string of men seeking her company, the leering gazes, the rough partners, the bruising clients. She was determined to never service another client, ever again, but they kept chasing her. If she ever saw another strawberry, she thought she might vomit. Even just the mention of the fruit made her itch and feel like her throat was closing up these days.

She ducked into a corner store near her shabby apartment. A small display in the back held little red cans of pepper spray.

Without sparing a thought for what she was actually doing, she dashed to the display and grabbed four cans. She paid for them and scurried back to her apartment, defensive weapons concealed in the small plastic bag she clutched. She held the top of the bag tightly to prevent the warm April rain from seeping into its contents.

She called her boss to quit the minute she arrived back in the apartment. She didn’t care that she really was now unemployed. She had enough saved for necessities and rent for a few months, and surely by the time that ran out she could find a better solution to her financial woes. 

She took out one of the bright red cans, inspecting the label and reading the directions carefully. Pepper spray was the perfect solution to her problem. If anyone else tried to treat her inappropriately... 

“Pepper Spray” Potts. She kind of liked the sound of that. No one would dare push around “Pepper Spray” Potts. “Pepper Spray” Potts was armed and could defend herself.

“Pepper Spray” Potts could take care of herself and follow her dreams, and damn anyone who tried to get in her way.

\-------------------

Twenty-two-year-old Pepper Potts picked up the phone on the third ring. 

“Hello?”

“Hello, my name is Maria Stark. I’m calling for a Ms. Pepper Potts?”

“This is she. How may I help you, Ms. Stark?”

“I’m calling on behalf of Stark Industries. My husband owns the company and our son will be graduating MIT next spring. We’re looking for someone with business expertise and experience in both marketing and social settings to act as his personal assistant once he comes to the company. I recently had lunch with a business professor of yours, and he gave me your name as an excellent candidate for the job. Now, we still have a few positions open in the meantime for summer internships over the next few months. One of our internship programs could be a good stepping stone to a full-time position with our company. If everything goes well this summer, we would take you aboard as a full-time PA at the company the following summer. Would you be interested in coming down for an interview some time?”

“That sounds wonderful, Ms. Stark. Thank you very much for your consideration. I would love to come down for an interview.”

“Excellent! I’m going to give you over to my secretary now to work out the details. Lovely chatting with you, Ms. Potts. I look forward to meeting you soon.”

“Thank you, you as well.”

\--------------

_“Earth to Pep, how did you get the name?”_

_Pepper smiled softly. “Nothing special, Tony. It’s just from my freckles.”_

**Author's Note:**

> Based on Ed Sheeran's "The a Team"
> 
> Not exactly your typical Pepper Potts character or backstory, but it seems fairly plausible. Pepper understands Tony in a way no one else can. She puts up with his drinking and womanizing. She cleans up his messes and always gives him another chance. She protects him from himself as if she understands why he feels the need to act the way he does. I don't think a random girl from Stark Industries miraculously has the skills or motivation it takes to wrangle Tony. She has to have a reason to stand by him from the beginning, for his sake and her own.


End file.
